Kenneth E. Hilbish

On June 11 and 12, Lawrence Marable and Deborah Powell, respectively, the former president and treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees Local 1793, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania to one count of conspiracy, five counts of property theft, and one count of making a false statement.Marable and Powell had conspired to convert $184,129.85 in dues and union checks for their personal use.The local represents employees at the VA Medical Center in Philadelphia.The guilty pleas follow a joint investigation by the U.S. Labor Department’s Office of Labor-Management Standards and the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Office of Inspector General.(OLMS, 7/5/07).

Few observers gave Janett Humphries much of a chance when she decided to take her case to trial.In the end, even she didn’t give herself much of a chance.On November 13, the 63-year-old former president of Service Employees International Union Local 99 pleaded guilty in federal court to charges she had embezzled more than $30,000 from her union to help finance Martin Ludlow’s successful 2003 run for Los Angeles City Council.She used the funds to pay for travel expenses and a cell phone for Ludlow’s campaign staff, plus personal air travel costs. Ludlow stepped down from his council post in 2005 to head the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, but pleaded guilty to a federal conspiracy charge early this year.Sentencing for Humphries is set for next February.She already has pleaded guilty to separate local charges.(Associated Press, 11/14/06).